Van crime hits one in five small businesses

The West Midlands is the country

30 November 1999

One in five small businesses have been hit by van crime.

The total cost could add up to a £2.2bn black market in stolen gear.

However, nearly 16 per cent of small business van drivers leave their tools in their vans overnight. One in 10 left power tools or their job-specific specialist equipment, the Zurich survey found.

The most vehicle crime-prone area was the West Midlands (31%), followed by London (26%) and East Anglia (22%).

The key target was small businesses in the construction industry: 27% had been victims of vehicle crime.

The top six regions for vehicle crime

West Midlands 31.2%
London 25.7%
East Anglia 22.2%
Scotland 20.0%
South West 20.0%
Wales 15.2%

Up to £2.2bn in stolen tools across the country

small businesses theft, van crime, Zurich Insurance

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Ralph Morton is an award-winning journalist and the founder of Business Car Manager (now renamed Business Motoring). Ralph writes extensively about the car and van leasing industry as well as wider fleet and company car issues. A former editor of What Car?, Ralph is a vastly experienced writer and editor and has been writing about the automotive sector for over 35 years.

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